Jaboukie Young-White
Birthdate: Jul 24, 1994
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois
Jaboukie Young-White (birthname: Jaboukie Young-White) is one of the first young film actors to have broken through in show business by building a large social media following on Twitter and Instagram. After building a stand-up career and social media reputation, Young-White earned his first big-screen role in writer-director Lucia Aniello’s black comedy, Rough Night (2017), starring Scarlett Johansson, Kate McKinnon, Jillian Bell, Iliana Glazer, and Zoë Kravitz, and grossing worldwide roughly double its estimated $20-$26 million.
Young-White’s next role was support to cast members Zoey Deutch, Glen Powell, Taye Diggs, and Lucy Liu in the Netflix rom-com, Set It Up (2018). For his animation voice-acting debut, Jaboukie Young-White joined the cast of John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Gal Gadot, Jane Lynch, Alfred Molina, Ed O’Neill, and Taraji P. Henson in Disney Animation Studios’ Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018), a stunning box-office success scoring over $529 million globally and Oscar-nominated for Best Animated Feature.
Young-White landed a role in the indie film about stand-up comedy, Vanilla (2019), followed by writer-director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson casting Young-White in her Netflix rom-com, Someone Great (2019), starring Gina Rodriguez, Brittany Snow, DeWanda Wise, and Lakeith Stanfield. Young-White had his first lead role in the movies in writer-director Jonah Feingold’s rom-com, Dating & New York (2021), co-starring Francesca Reale, Catherine Cohen, and Alex Moffat, and premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Young-White’s next role was in writer-director Mike Mills’ parental drama, C’mon C’mon (2021), starring Joaquin Phoenix, Gaby Hoffmann, and Scoot McNairy, and released by A24 to poor box-office returns under $5 million. Young-White returned to Disney Animation Studios in a co-starring voice role in the computer-animated feature Strange World (2022), directed by Don Hall and co-starring the voices of Jake Gyllenhaal, Dennis Quaid, Gabrielle Union, and Lucy Liu.
Personal Details
Born in Chicago, Jaboukie Young-White was raised with his brothers Javaughn and Javeigh in the Southside Chicago community of Harvey by parents who were immigrants from Jamaica. Young-White graduated from Marian Catholic High School with a focus on theater and speech. He studied at DePaul University, where he performed in the college improv group, The Titanic Players. Young-White left DePaul in his senior year to launch his comedy career full-time. He identifies as gay.
Filmography
actor
Upcoming (1)
- 2025 | Atlantis
Atlantis
A musical inspired by Pharrell Williams' childhood in Virginia Beach.
Previous (5)
- 2022 | Strange WorldasEthan Clade
Strange World
The legendary Clades are a family of explorers whose differences threaten to topple their latest and most crucial mission.
- 2021 | C’mon C’mon
C’mon C’mon
When his sister asks him to look after her son, a radio journalist embarks on a cross-country trip with his energetic nephew to show him life away from Los Angeles.
- 2021 |
- 2018 | Ralph Breaks the InternetasMcNeely
Ralph Breaks the Internet
Six years after the events of "Wreck-It Ralph," Ralph and Vanellope, now friends, discover a wi-fi router in their arcade, leading them into a new adventure.
- 2017 | Rough Night
Rough Night
Things go terribly wrong for a group of girlfriends who hire a male stripper for a bachelorette party in Miami.
Some Facts About Jaboukie Young-White
Roots Joke: Jaboukie Young-White is of Jamaican descent but often jokes that he’s Italian.
Twitter Wars: Young-White has been banned from Twitter twice, once for posing as the FBI, and once for posing as CNN.
